Monday, November 30, 2015

Carol

Set in the early 1950s, Director Todd Haynes’ slow-moving Carolis the story of a young woman (Rooney Mara) and an older, married woman (Cate
Blanchett), who falls in love with each other.

Blanchett’s character is the gay version of the woman she
played in Blue Jasmine and, though her performance is excellent, I am
surprised she opted for a role that was, in most respects, so similar.

The standout performance, here, is Rooney Mara’s as the
inexperienced department store worker, who steps into her own power as a woman
in both her career and her love life.

The problem with the film is due either to Patricia Highsmith’s
novel or Phyllis Nagy’s screenplay or Laura Rosenthal’s casting, since the men
in the lives of the women (Jake Lacy and Lyle Chandler) are such walking dildos
that even the staunchest anti-gay advocate would have to give these ladies a
pass and bless their union.The “issue”
becomes no issue and it is surprising that Haynes takes so long to bring it to
fruition.

I give Carol a 3.8 out of 5, but both
Blanchett and Mara get 4 out 5 for their performances.

About Me

Brian Porzak: I am a cinephile who likes to view films with a live audience. My taste runs the gamut, including indies, studio films, foreign films and most all genres. Because I see so many films, friends often ask me what to see. So, I thought I'd blog about what is worth seeing or not. As a writer/filmmaker myself, I hope to give a more uplifting perspective than the typical critic. Filmmaking is tremendously difficult. Just because some problems might exist in a particular work does not, necessarily, destroy its enjoyability and I think that is necessary to point out to would-be viewers.
See www.Aix-en-Film.com